LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) — With 56 seconds remaining in a tie game Sunday, the Bears needed one more stop to give themselves a chance to beat the Browns. Instead, disaster ensued on a pivotal third-and-15 breakdown.
Bears head coach Matt Eberflus, who has served as the team’s de facto defensive coordinator since September, called for a blitz that sent six players to rush Browns quarterback Joe Flacco and dropped five into coverage. One of those defenders in coverage was defensive tackle Justin Jones, who proved to be the nearest defender to tight end David Njoku, who ran an underneath route.
Flacco found Njoku to turn that desperation play into 34-yard completion, which set up kicker Dustin Hopkins' game-winning field goal in Cleveland's come-from-behind 20-17 win against Chicago. On Monday, Eberflus reflected on the key play that was crucial as the Bears dropped to 5-9.
“That’s a pressure that you have a guy drop under there for the quick throw,” Eberflus said. “You’re overloading the pressure and you’re expecting that to get home. He retreated back for a little bit deeper and had a chance to float it over the top. Again, that was unfortunate. Again, like I said, it’s a play that’s designed to get the ball spit out fast and tackle them and get them to first down.
“I’ve been calling defenses for 12 years, 13 years now, and every game you have three or four that you want back. So, again, that one there, when it doesn’t work in a critical situation, of course you’d like to see it work in that situation, but it didn’t.”
The Browns’ conversion on that completion to Njoku underscored the Bears’ defensive struggles in the fourth quarter.
The Bears were dominant for most of the game defensively, building a 17-7 lead in large part because of how they flustered Flacco. Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds produced a big play with a pick-six early in the third quarter, the second of Chicago's three interceptions of Flacco.
But the 38-year-old Flacco – who has started the Browns' past three games after being out of the league in 2023 – threw for 212 yards in the fourth quarter alone. That included a 51-yard touchdown to receiver Amari Cooper, who weaved through the Bears’ secondary en route to the end zone. The ensuing extra point tied the game at 17-17.
Despite their meltdown, the Bears nearly pulled through with a remarkable victory on a Hail Mary heave from quarterback Justin Fields, a pass that was deflected down to receiver Darnell Mooney. But Mooney was falling away from a scrum and couldn't secure the football as it popped out of his grasp.
Sunday marked the third time the Bears had blown a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter this season.
"Adversity, it brings out the character in a team and the character in a person,” Edmunds said. “I look at it as a prerequisite of advancement. As long as we take it like that, as long as that's our mentality, you know nothing can stop us.
“Everybody has the right mindset. Everybody has the right frame as far as getting better. And when you have that, I mean, the sky is the limit."
The Bears (5-9) host the Cardinals (3-11) on Sunday at Soldier Field.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.